Former Republican presidential candidate Michele Bachmann announced Tuesday she's running for reelection to her Minnesota congressional seat, despite a new challenge caused by redistricting.

After a judicial panel released a new congressional map, Bachmann decided to run in a district currently represented by a Democrat.

Bachmann said she plans to seek reelection in the redrawn 6th District, which runs from suburbs north of the Twin Cities northwest to the city of St. Cloud. She said that represents "the heart" of the district she has represented since 2007.

"The judges made the decision they made, but I'm choosing to stay with my people," Bachmann said in an interview with The Associated Press.

The new district is made up of socially conservative voters who have supported Bachmann in the past.

"I embody the voice of the 6th Congressional District," Bachmann said. "I faithfully took that voice all across the United States and amplified that very common sense Minnesota heartland voice of not spending more money than we take in, not increasing anyone's taxes, and having the government live within its means."

The congresswoman, who dropped out the presidential race in January, said her time in the national spotlight will help her be an even more outspoken advocate for fiscal responsibility in Congress.

Minnesota's congressional representatives aren't required to live in the districts they represent. State lawmakers, however, must fulfill that requirement.